Cyclobacterium halophilum sp. nov., a marine bacterium isolated from a coastal-marine wetland.

A novel Gram-stain-negative, slightly halophilic bacterium, designated strain GASx41(T), was isolated from soil of the coastal-marine wetland Gomishan in Iran. Cells of strain GASx41(T) were curved, ring-like or horseshoe-shaped rods and non-motile. Strain GASx41(T) was strictly aerobic, and catalase- and oxidase-positive. The strain was able to grow at NaCl concentrations of 1-10% (w/v), with optimum growth occurring at 2.5-3% (w/v) NaCl. The optimum temperature and pH for growth were 25-30 °C and pH 7.5-8.0. On the basis of 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis, strain GASx41(T) was shown to belong to the genus Cyclobacterium within the phylum Bacteroidetes and showed closest phylogenetic similarity to 'Cyclobacterium jeungdonense' HMD3055 (98.0%). The DNA G+C content of strain GASx41(T) was 48.1 mol%. The major cellular fatty acids of strain GASx41(T) were iso-C15 : 0, summed feature 4 (iso-C15 : 0 2-OH and/or C16 : 1ω7c), anteiso-C15 : 0 2-OH, anteiso-C15 : 0 and iso-C17 : 0 3-OH, and its polar lipid pattern consisted of phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylcholine and 12 unknown lipids. The only quinone present was menaquinone 7 (MK-7). All these features confirmed the placement of isolate GASx41(T) within the genus Cyclobacterium. On the basis of evidence from this study, a novel species of the genus Cyclobacterium, Cyclobacterium halophilum sp. nov., is proposed, with strain GASx41(T) ( = IBRC-M 10761(T) = CECT 8341(T)) as the type strain.